Structures such as tables, ladders and tripods have legs for positioning on a surface. If not all of the legs contact the surface, the position of the structure will be unstable. The position of the structure can be made more stable by adjusting the heights of individual legs. This is often done with a screw-type mechanism commonly found at the bottom of the legs.
Alternatively, all of the legs may be in contact with the surface but the structure may not have a desired orientation relative to the surface. Again, the position of the structure relative to the surface may be adjusted by adjusting the height of the individual legs with the same type of screw mechanism. Other structures such as large machines and houses may contact the ground directly without legs or through supporting beams or a base plate. Level or tilt adjustment of these large structures typically is done with individually controlled jacks or wedges.
In any case the adjustment of the position of the structure typically is cumbersome and time consuming. There is a need for a technically advanced solution.
Pistons have been utilised to stabilise structures such as ladders, tripods and tables. Generally one piston is associated with each leg of the structure. The pistons are in fluid communication. Thus the pistons can be utilised to together adjust the position of individual support legs. When the position of the structure is considered stable the pistons are manually isolated so no further adjustment occurs. These systems do not provide self-adjusting support.